The Line Between Light and Shadow
by Chima
Summary: Not everything is what it seems...but where does the darkness end and the light begin?


Ozone. Sweat. A harsh growl. Shadows slashing across his face, only inches away. Pain as he slammed him against the wall again, enough to make Kakashi's face contort for half an instant before the lazy calmness returned. The sharingan opened, and Gai jerked back in surprise and something too soft for disgust but too evil for joy crossed his features.

"You and your perfect little _Sasuke-kun."_ The smile was there, gleaming white teeth, but it radiated none of the warmth it usually did. It still held some note of its song of triumph, but it was a twisted, out-of-tune coda. "Given everything he wants and still he wants more."

"And you and your little clone, _Lee-kun."_ Kakashi's eyes were half-closed, making him appear lazy an tired, but the sharp spinning in his left eye contrasted sickly with the lazy posture of the rest of his body. A breath of air, a quick scuffling and a slam, and then Kakashi is no longer the one pinned against the wall. The trickles of blood running down Gai's back mingle with the sweat on Kakashi's chest as he leans forward to hiss in Gai's ear, "So full of _youth_ he doesn't know why his heart aches." He nudges away a lock of Gai's hair with his nose, his breath cold on the other man's neck as the dark hairs cling to his scarred cheek instead. Gai forces himself away from the wall enough that his forehead isn't grinding against it, but is shoved back before he can go farther. His head is turned at an awkward angle now, cheek against the wall and eyes glaring at Kakashi. Kakashi's pale skin melds with the half-light, hair catching the moonlight and making it dance like blades spinning in and out of another's guard "Do you know what they do when you're away, smiling at the beauty of the world?"

Gai clenches his jaw and

_Blood on the ground. Deep scuffmarks in the dirt, too deep for light sparring._

his eyes narrow, a hiss of breath as he forces himself away from the precipice of Opening. He's still tottering close enough for heat to radiate from his body

_The harsh sound of flesh meeting flesh, a scream of exaltation and pain a moment later, both at once and an instant apart, impossible to tell who uttered which._

but instead of falling he wrenches from Kakashi's grip and snarls, "Do you know that your boy is always the one to end up on the ground?" The sharp smell of ozone, only just faded away, returns suddenly as Kakashi's right fists clenches. The lazy eyes narrow for an instant and the red swirls faster, the grey all but closing before both return to apathy. Or begin to, because before they can get there Kakashi is slammed against the wall again. This time Gai's face is so close their noses are touching. Kakashi's eyes haven't quite managed to return to their calmness, instead holding a spark of something escaping the barriers he's raised. The shadows slide across Gai's body as his muscles flex ever so slightly to make Kakashi twitch despite his cool demeanor. Gai's hair is like a cap of midnight, the dark of the moon in its last crescent, and his eyes are deep and narrow. "Never insult my boy again." It's said with a possessiveness that speaks of more than the relationship most teachers have with their students.

"I never did," Kakashi said quietly, but there was a coldness in his words and the downward quirk of the corners of his mouth that hinted he might not be telling the whole truth. The Sharingan still spun, but it was more controlled as he brought his eyes up to meet Gai's. "Leave off your belittling of Sasuke." The absence of honorific said more than any words that could have replaced it.

"I would never speak badly of him," Gai growled, but his eyes slid away from Kakashi's as he said it, as if he had something to hide. Gai sighs a moment later, and Kakashi lets the tension drain out of his body. He releases Kakashi's arms, frowning honestly now at the bruises his fingers left on the pale skin. Kakashi wants to rub at his wrists to help the circulation return to normal, but knows his left was wrenched badly and doesn't want to show the weakness.

"We should get your chest patched up," Kakashi drawls softly. Instead Gai takes his wrist and starts to knead it in that expert way of his, loosening the overtightened muscles.

He sighs again. "Don't worry about it."


End file.
